Unemployment road trip
by ya-ninny
Summary: Nick decides to take Jess on a road trip after she loses her job as a teacher at middle school. Who knows what could happen on a 'friendly' road trip.


Jess had just been fired from her dream job as a teacher. She had been spending her days slouched on the couch watching re-runs of Golden Girls. Although sympathetic for Jess, Nick started to become impatient with her new found attitude of "I don't need a job. My boobs are loving unemployment." Nick knew he had to get her out of the apartment so he had booked a few weeks off work to take her away. He was a good friend.  
>Nick finished work early and walked into the loft to find Jess, unsurprisingly, on the couch where he left her five hours ago. "Jess, have you seen yourself? Looks like the loft troll has returned."<br>"Shut up Nick, I don't need your crap." Jess replied sharply.  
>Nick walked toward Jess, taking her arm and pulling her up from the couch, much to her persistence. "Come on, get dressed. I'm going to take you out and get you some well-needed fresh air."<br>Jess rolled her eyes and sighed. Acting like a child, she stomped into her room groaning. "Where are we going?" she called out to Nick.

"It's a surprise, but pack for at least 9 days and for any kind of weather. Oh and don't forget your swimsuit." Nick spat out, a hundred words per second. Jess appeared almost immediately after Nick finished speaking, tucking her head around her bedroom door. "9 days? Are you kidnapping me?" Nick laughed nervously and gave her a cheeky wink but never denied it. After a good 25 minutes or so, Jess emerged from her bedroom looking surprisingly troll-like for the amount of time she had just spent in there. Sighing in disbelief that Jess didn't look much different (apart from she wasn't wearing her pyjamas) Nick took Jess's luggage out into the elevator. "Wait, where is _your_ stuff?" Jess asked trailing behind Nick who wasn't giving her many answers. Standing in the elevator Jess wondered how they were going to even drive to this mystery place. Her car was at the garage after Outside Dave decided to use the air from her tyres as a DIY hair dryer and Nick's car, well that hasn't moved in months. As they reached the ground floor Jess saw what was waiting outside for them. Nick had rented a 1969 yellow VW Camper, Jess's favourite. Jess ran outside like an excited school girl and spun around to see Nick. "Are you kidding me?" she screamed excitedly. Nick smiled and loaded Jess's bags into the van. "Come on in, have a look." Nick said inviting Jess in. She jumped in, sitting in the passenger seat beside Nick who was at the wheel. "So… are you going to tell me where we're going now?" Jess begged  
>"I'm glad you've perked up from earlier." Nick smiled, avoiding answering her question. <p>

They hit the road and within an instant Jess became head DJ. She put on the song A Thousand Miles and Nick groaned "No way." Jess smiled, "Oh come on, and... are you going to tell me where we are going yet?" she said speedily. A small, impish grin appeared on Nick's face, "Nowhere in particular... You needed to get out and have a bit of fun so I planned this road trip for you."  
>""Planned this road trip", yeah that's what you did." She mutters "Nowhere in particular" in a sarcastic tone. There was a long silence, the only sound being the song in the background, "There's always times like this when I think of you and I wonder if you ever think of me" Jess quickly leant forward, changing the song on the stereo and breaking the awkward tension. Highway to Hell came on. "That's more like it." Nick cheered. He turned up the volume and gave the van some gas. <p>

Around 45 minutes had passed by and Nick and Jess were still driving along the highway until, at last, Nick turned down a narrow lane. The road was hidden by over grown plants and the track was dusty. It looked like it had been a while since any car had driven down it. As they followed the bumpy path the view ahead became clear. The sunlight cracked through the low hanging branches and in the distance a beautiful view of a snowy mountain range appeared. Nick pulled over and got out of the van; Jess followed. Without a word being said they both stared in awe at the incredible view in front of them; the only sound was the nature surrounding them. Nick walked around the front of the van to reach Jess and took her hand. He pulled her closer to him and together they leant back on the front bonnet admiring the scenery. Nick broke the silence.  
>"I come here when I need to be alone. It's peaceful." He turned to look at her, "Ya know Jess, I've never shown this to anyone before."<br>"Why not?" Jess asked.  
>"It's special; I don't want to ruin it."<br>"Then why did you bring me here?" She said, confused.  
>Nick glanced down, shyly, "because you are special." Jess gulped. Her throat turned hard and her heart melted. Nobody had ever called her special before (apart from Jessica P, and she wasn't being nice!). The fact it was Nick made it much more significant, although she did not know why. Nick shuffled closer to Jess and put his arm around her shoulder. She rested her head on him and breathed in the cool, fresh air, smelling all the wonderful aromas around her. "I didn't even know this place existed." She whispered sweetly. Nick let out a small laugh, "that's why it is so special." <p>

Leaving Jess to continue to marvel at the peaks, Nick made to the rear of the camper, producing a large picnic basket that he had placed there earlier. He opened the basket and took out an old scrunched up blanket and laid it on the ground. Jess turned to see what Nick had set up and her jaw dropped. "Nick, you didn't have to do all of this." She opened to picnic basket to find it was filled with bottles of Heisler. "NICK!" Jess moaned. "I'm starving and this is all you brought?"  
>"Whoa Jess, you expect way too much of me." Nick exclaimed, cracking open two bottle and handing one to Jess.<br>"Hey Nick," Jess started after taking a sip of beer, "what's all of this about?"  
>"All of what?" Nick said, acting clueless.<br>"You know, this whole road trip thing… The van, the view, the beer; I'm not complaining, I'm just wondering." She said staring into the distance.  
>"I guess we'll have to find out, won't we" and with that he closed the basket and stood up, dragging the blanket from underneath Jess. He walked back to the van, "Come on, our next destination awaits." He said and jumped back into the driver's seat. Jess was now standing where the blanket once was, looking at Nick in frustration. "Why do we have to leave? I love this place."<br>"We'll be back." Nick said and directed Jess into the camper.  
>The peaks were soon far off into the distance as Nick and Jess set off for their next adventure.<p>

The day soon turned to night and it was Jess's time to drive. "How can I drive if I don't know where we are going?" She asked, still persisting Nick to give her answers. Nick rolled his eyes in exasperation. He directed Jess to drive straight until given instruction, which she obeyed. It wasn't long until they found themselves starving hungry in the middle of nowhere. The only sight to see was the long, winding road and the desert surrounding them. The road was quiet with very few other vehicles around. Jess squinted hard, looking into the distance where she noticed two very small lights appear. As they proceeded down the road the lights became clearer and formed into a little building with a sign that read 'Highway Diner – 24 Hours'. "Pull over" Nick exclaimed in pure excitement from the thought of food. Jess pulled into the deserted parking lot and turned the engine off. The diner was a dull, run-down building. Half of the sign above was brightly lit up and half of it flicked so the sign read High Dine occasionally.  
>They got out of the camper van and together made their way into the diner. Inside they saw only two people, an elderly man who sat alone in the last booth drinking what looked like whisky and a waitress. The waitress was a middle aged woman with a mousey perm. She walked over to Nick and Jess as they entered. "Welcome to Highway Diner, please take a menu. Sit anywhere. You can only use the rest room if you buy something." She said in a matter of fact tone and walked away. Keeping as far away as they possible could from the old man – who was now talking to himself – they sat at a window booth. The seats were ripped and the table was wobbly. The walls were damp and the wallpaper was peeling off. The entire diner had a strange, dislikeable aroma. They opened their menus. "Ugh, this place stinks." Jess whispered over the Nick behind her menu. Nick said nothing, just nodded and continued to scan the menu. Nick raised his arm and called over the waitress, "excuse me, could we order to take-away? It's just we're in a rush to get back on the road." The waitress raised her eyebrows in disapproval but eventually nodded and took their order. "Thank you Nick" Jess whispered with a small smile as the waitress left. By the time the food arrived the old man was sound asleep and snoring very loudly. They were both ready to leave. They took their food and hurried out into the parking lot and into the camper. As they sat in the back, eating their food Jess began to laugh. "What's so funny?" Nick asked. "We are never going in another place like that, no matter how rough this road trip is going to be" Jess giggled. Nick started to laugh with her, "I wonder how long that man had been there?" They both fell about laughing.<br>Once they finished eating they laid out the bed. "There is only one bed Jess, is that okay?" Before he could turn around to get an answer Jess was fast asleep on the small double bed. Nick shrugged and joined her, although being careful to stay as far away from her without falling off the bed. He didn't want to step over the line.  
>The early rising sun glistened through the windows of the van, causing Jess to wake up first. As she opened her eyes she realised the arm, which not belong to her, around her waist. She turned her head slightly to find Nick's sleeping body interlinked with hers. A smile crept onto her face as she watched Nick sleep. She squirmed away slowly, careful not to wake him. She sat up and looked out the window to admire the beautiful sunrise. Only seconds later Nick awoke and sat up next to Jess. Nick yawned whilst stretching his arms above his head. He gradually sat up next to Jess.<br>"Sorry did I wake you?" Jess said to Nick in concern.  
>"No, no. I was woken by the glaring sun. Shut the drapes."<br>"What? Nick, no! It's beautiful."  
>Nick sighed and got up out of bed and began pulling new clothes out of his luggage. "We better get dressed, our next destination is waiting." Nick said and stood behind the curtain that sectioned them to get changed. They were soon back on the road. It was the third day of their road trip. It was early morning and the roads were empty. The silence was peaceful.<br>"Isn't the world beautiful?" Jess said, looking out the window and the miles of untouched desert.  
>"It has its moments" Nick replied, "it's not as beautiful as you." He winked.<br>Jess blushed, her entire face turning uncontrollably red. "You think I'm beautiful?"  
>"Of course I do. Look at you." He laughed at her embarrassment.<br>She relaxed slightly at Nick's confidence. "Well, you're not so bad yourself."  
>"Oh yeah?" Nick said, taking his eyes off the road for a second too long to look at Jess. He swerved the van back to the right side of the road. "Ha, sorry." He said nervously. Jess's beauty was becoming too much of a distraction.<p>

They had been driving for miles and had now reached a junction. There was two sign posts, "Spring Falls: 3 miles east" And "Woodland Forest: 5 miles west". Nick and Jess looked at each other simultaneously. "Spring Falls they said in unison. Nick took the left turning and the made their way to, what they thought was a waterfall. As they arrived at the destination, there was a waterfall although, they wasn't the attraction. They approached the entrance. An old tattered sign hung from a post, "spring falls straight ahead". They drove down the stony path to reveal a large open space. In the distance they could hear the waterfall gushing but straight ahead of them was hundreds of parks up campers (like their own) and tents. A young man, with dreadlocks down to his ass, ripped clothes, bare feet and a joint in his hand approached their van, "Hi man. Welcome to spring falls. Let me show you where to park." He walked off, heading in the direction of the other campers. "Follow him!" Jess ordered.

They parked up and got out of the van. "My name is Larry. You can camp here for free as long as you keep the peace." The man slurred as wandered off. "Where the hell are we?" Nick groaned to Jess. Just before Jess could answer, a woman appeared. The woman was young, early 20's. She had cropped blonde hair an wore a long patterned dress. She also didn't wear shoes. "No talk of hell here, it's the awakening heaven." Everyone spoke in a soft voice with slightly slurred words. "Everyone is high" Jess realised. Nick raised his eyebrows. "We can't be outcasts, man." She imitated in a calm voice. She ran after the woman, who had gotten distracted by some kind of tree. "Hey, errm, hi. Where could we, ya know, get hitched with some..." She continued in a hushed tone, "marijuana." The girl blinked, a confused look upon her face. "Come on, everyone here is off their head on pot." Jess giggled. "Pot! Oh, we grow it around back. Here have this." The girl handed Jess a large joint. "Come to the camp fire tonight." She gave Jess a somewhat flirty wink and walked off. Spinning on the spot, Jess ran back towards Nick waving the joint in her hand. "Look what Jess got" she sung. "Gimme that." Nick said a tool it off her. He pulled a lighter from his jean pocket and lit up. Holding it between his lips, he took a long drag then passed it to Jess. Trying to repeat what she say nick to, she copied exactly, and not to Nick's surprise began coughing and spluttering everywhere. "Take small tokes first to get used to it." Nick advised taking the joint back again. It wasn't long before they were both droopy-eyed and giggly. "Hey... They said there was a bonfire tonight. Should we check in out?" Jess said, walking toward Nick. "Nah." Jess grabbed Nick's shirt, "oh come on man" she slurred, "it'll be fun-nee. Lot's of pretty girls." Her face, at this point, was only inches away from his. She lifted her hand and began stroking his cheek, feeling the roughness of his beard, as she gazed into his eyes. Nick looked at her awkwardly, although allowed her to touch him. The moment was soon interrupted as she started giggling uncontrollably. She let go of Nick's flannel and marched off towards the waterfall. Nick rushed after her. As they approached the lake, the gushing became louder and louder until it was finally visible. The glistening water splashing into the clear, fresh water. "Wow" Jess said in ore. "It's beautiful isn't it" said a voice from behind them. "Incredible." Jess replied, eyes fixed on the beauty that laid ahead of her. A beautiful 10 seconds of silence took as they both stood side-by-side taking in the beauty of nature. However, it was only 10 seconds until Jess starting pulling off her clothes and running into the cool water. "Jess" Nick called after her, but it was no use. She was going in that water whether he liked it or not. Since she was, let's say, in her right frame of mind, Nick knew he had to follow her in. So in he went, stripping down to just his stripy blue boxers. Squealing like a 5 year old at Disney Land, Jess splashed around in the, once calm, lake. She turned suddenly as she heard Nick coming up behind her. "You came in!" She stated as she pushed a huge wave of water directly at his face. After wiping the water from his eyes he brought his hands together forming and barrier and just as he was about to splash Jess, she spun round and slow-motion ran towards the waterfall, catching the splash on her back. She ran behind the rushing water, resting back on the rock. Nick joined her. "It's peaceful" Jess said through heavy breaths. She gently closed her eyes, feeling the cool breeze against her face. She felt a slight warmth against her face and opened her eyes, one by one, to find Nick standing immediately in front of her. He reached out and took her hand, linking his fingers through hers. Jess said nothing, holding his strong gaze. Jess could feel her heart thumping in her chest. She broke the silence. "Nick..." Before she could finish Nick pressed his lips up against hers. He ran his fingers through her long locks, brushing it off her shoulder so her neck was exposed. Part lips, he walks around the back of her, whilst Jess stands, frozen in shock. He placed both hands around her waist and held her close to him. He leant his head to the side of her neck and began caressing her soft skin with his wet lips. He placed small kisses down her neck and onto her shoulder. He released his hands, bringing them up to her back and releasing the clasp of her bra. As it fell to the ground, he brought his hands round to the front of her chest. He continued pressing small kisses along her upper back; the warm sensation sends a tingling through her skin. His hands could feel the fast pumping of her heart as they rose up to cup her breast, massaging them gently. Jess shivered as the water was falling over them. Nick walked back around to face her, gazing deeply into her beautiful ocean-like blue eyes. Hands still cupping her breasts, he leant forward and pressed his lips into hers. His hands simultaneously began moving around, feeling her smooth, roundness of her breasts as their lips interlinked and they softly kissed. His tongue slid into her mouth and gently swirled it around her mouth. His thumbs met the centre of her breast, stroking her nipples.  
>He pulled his mouth away from hers and resumed placing warm kisses on her collar bones, down to her chest and eventually meeting his hands at her erect nipples. He hovered over her left breast for a few seconds teasing her. He skins formed small pimples from the warmth of his breath against her. She moaned loudly and pushed his head closer. He enclosed his soft lips over her nipple, his tongue circling around the hard tip. He pulled his head away and moved towards the other breast repeating the same movement. Meanwhile his hands gradually move further down her body until they are grabbing her ass. He gripped her butt hard and ripped off her panties, letting them fall to her ankles. He released hid hands from her butt and brought them round to her hips. One hand slid down her leg and round to the inside of her thigh. He could feel her body trembling as hid hand rose higher up the inside of her leg. Nick took his head back up to face Jess's. Her head was arched back and her eyes were squeezed shut. He wanted some reassurance but Jess whimpered "don't- stop-" as he brought my hand up further, reaching her clit. He teased her, running his finger up and down before suddenly plunging it into her, as she screamed. He made his way gradually down her body.<p>

He felt her fingers in his hair, resting on top of his head. He moved his head closer to her centre. He gently licked up her slit to her clit and swirled his tongue around it. His middle finger continued to plunge and then his tongue joined in. Swirling up and down. He eventually released both his tongue and his finger and reached down to pull up her panties. He stood up straight and met her beautiful face once again. Jess collapsed back on the rock letting the exhilarating waterfall rush over her. Nick leant beside her. He dropped his arm and let his hand find hers. He wrapped his fingers around hers and they stood together under the shower from the cool fall.

"That was- unexpected" Jess said, once she had caught her breath back. "You're beautiful, I hope you know that." Nick replied, still holding her hand. Jess stood up straight and turned to face Nick. Taking his face in both of her hands, she leant forward and kissed him. She kissed him like she had been waiting to ever since she met him. Maybe she had. The kiss trembled through Nick's skin. A rush of heat started in his chest and gradually spread through his body. Everything he had wanted had just come true. In the distance they could hear voices of people walking towards them. Jess pulled back, looking up at Nick's dilated brown eyes. "Come on, let's go." She turned around and walked out from behind the fall, pulling Nick by his arm to follow. Neither Nick nor Jess were sure what would come of the promiscuous happenings from that night. But what both of them were sure of was that they enjoyed it.

The trip was soon to be over and they had a long journey ahead of them back to Los Angeles. The sexual awkwardness had evaporated but now they were heading back to the loft, would things change?


End file.
